Britain's regional property markets experienced considerable variations in fortune last year, with Scotland and Northern Ireland leading for the second year running. London is reasserting its dominance, but northern England's markets are cooling fast.
Northern Ireland was one of the strongest property sectors in the world last year. According to Britain's biggest mortgage lender, Halifax, property prices there rocketed 53 per cent.
Halifax expects Northern Ireland to be the only British region to enjoy double-digit price growth this year as the national slowdown affects every region. The average price of a house in Northern Ireland is GBP196,874 (HK$2.96 million), 5 per cent above the British average of GBP186,954. The peace dividend has encouraged urban regeneration projects that have drawn investors and other homebuyers into the province, raising prices.
Having missed out on the late 1990s property boom, Scottish house prices have doubled over the past five years. They increased 13 per cent last year, making it Britain's second-strongest property market. It will remain one of the stronger markets this year because it still has plenty of catching up to do with the rest of the country. Edinburgh, Aberdeen and Dundee are hot spots.
'The housing market in Scotland continued to grow at a faster rate than the UK average for the fourth consecutive year in 2006,' said Tim Crawford, group economist for Bank of Scotland. 'Despite this, Scotland remains the most affordable part of the UK to buy a house, with an average house price nearly a third less than the UK average.'
Prices rose 13 per cent in East Anglia last year. However, Halifax expects a more modest 5 per cent rise in prices this year.